1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a skateboard, such as a longboard; a standing surface extension therefor, such as a tailkick; as well as a system of a skateboard and a standing surface extension.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
From the prior art, longboards having a pintail, i.e., a pointed end which has only a slight overhang over the axle, as well as longboards with a tailkick, i.e., a wide end which has a larger overhang over the axle, are known.
The advantage of a longboard having a pintail is that it is relatively unaffected by wheelbites. A wheelbite is a condition in which, during cornering, the board edge of a longboard comes into contact with one of the wheels on the inner side of the curve and gets stuck. This is due to the fact that the axles of a longboard automatically steer to the left and right due to the axle geometry thereof when the board tilts. If, for example, the board is tilted to the right, the front wheels steer to the right and the rear wheels in the opposite direction to the left. This initiates a turn in the direction of the board inclination. When steering to the right, the wheels on the right side of the board (front and rear) move towards each other. The distance of the wheels on the right side of the board to the wider, middle area of the longboard decreases. At the same time, the tilting of the board reduces the distance from the right edge of the board to the wheels on the inner side of the curve. In the case of the wheelbite mentioned above, at least one of the wheels on the inner side of the curve touches the board and, in the worst case, gets stuck, which can lead to a loss of control of the rider. Due to the pointed ends of a longboard having a pintail, the distance between the edge of the board and the wheels is still large enough to minimize the risk of a wheelbite or to prevent it. However, due to the pointed ends, the rider is forced to be relatively centred on the board, whereby both axles are loaded during riding.
Furthermore, longboards having a tailkick are known. Because of the wider ends (front and/or rear), which protrude beyond the axle to the front or rear, the rider also has a standing surface on the board which is exactly above an axle, or even in front of the axle (at the front end of the board) or behind the axle (at the rear end of the board). This makes it possible for the rider, for example, in order to jump, to lift an axle of the board from the ground by shifting his body weight to in front of the front axle or behind the rear axle. As a result, the board is moved upwards like a rocker. With sufficient force, a complete lifting of the board from the ground is possible. A tailkick over the front axle is also very advantageous for drifting during a downhill ride, as the rider can thus shift the bulk of his body weight onto the front axle prior to the initiation of the drift, and can push the unloaded rear axle away from himself for the initiation of the drift.
Whether a rider is using a board having a pintail or a tailkick is also dependent on whether he wants to use the board primarily for city riding (tendency to pintail), or rather for downhill riding (tendency to tailkick). Furthermore, if a widely spread foot position is preferred, the choice is also more likely to be a longboard having a tailkick. In addition, some riders prefer a pintail on the one hand and a tailkick on the other hand for individual reasons. Freestyle tricks can only be executed with kicktail boards.
Furthermore, longboards from the prior art are configured as either pintail or tailkick in the front or the rear. Boards which have a tailkick on one side and a pintail on the other side are also known.
In particular, a longboard having a pintail and consisting of a carbon fibre structure, the HYVE® GridBoard, is known in the art.
It is an object of the invention to provide a skateboard, a standing surface extension, and a system of both, whereby a rider can individually and reversibly adapt a single skateboard or longboard to obtain either a version as a pintail or as a tailkick at the front and/or at the rear.